Gun-wearing leader sparks concern at Ghana inauguration

By Thomas Naadi, ACCRA Ghana

Burkina Faso's military leader, Captain Ibrahim Traore sparked concern when he attended Tuesday's inauguration of Ghana's President John Mahama with a holstered pistol at his waist.

Some have described this unusual move as a breach of security protocol.

Others have seen it as a lack of trust in the ability of Ghanaian officials to protect the Burkinabe junta chief. It is not clear if Traore had permission to carry the weapon.

Mahama was sworn in after beating the candidate from the then governing party, Mahamudu Bawumia, by a large margin in last month's election.

Traore, was one of 17 heads of state present, and his visit came at a time of diplomatic tension in West Africa.

Burkina Faso, along with two other military-led states – Mali and Niger, has broken away from the regional bloc Ecowas to form a new alliance.

Security analyst Vladmir Antwi Danso said that it is unusual for a head of state to carry a sidearm to an inauguration ceremony as the security of the visiting leader is the responsibility of the host.

He indicated that Ghanaian and Burkinabe security personnel should have discussed the issue to ensure the right protocols were being followed. "Either that wasn't done or it was poorly done," Dr Danso said.

While another security analyst, Retd Col Festus Aboagye, agrees that the host nation is typically responsible for protecting visiting presidents, he says bilateral arrangements can lead to variations.

He suggested that a consensus may have been reached to allow Traore to wear his military attire and carry his sidearm, along with some of his personal security detail.

"I don't think it's a security breach in the context of how people are saying, [as] if he had taken out the weapon to shoot. That's a bit far-fetched," Col Aboagye said.

The Alliance of Sahel States, made up of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, has accused Ecowas of trying to destabilise their countries. Traore may have had that at the back of his mind when attending the inauguration ceremony.

But the fact that a military leader was "wielding a gun demonstrating that they have that power of the gun because they're military leaders and attending an investiture of a democracy is a bit awkward", Emmanuel Bensah who works on issues of regional integration, said.

Relations between Ghana and Burkina Faso have been strained, particularly after Ghana's former President Nana Akufo-Addo accused Traore of harbouring Russian mercenaries.

Traore's attendance at the inauguration was seen as a significant diplomatic gesture aimed at normalising relations between the two countries.

Ghana's support is crucial in helping Burkina Faso address its deadly militant jihadist insurgency, which poses a threat to coastal West African states.